


Misery Loves Company

by AmiLu



Series: there are stars in your eyes [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, I don't know about Keith, M/M, One Shot, Sickfic, but they are both adults, matt is an astronomy teacher
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-28
Updated: 2017-04-28
Packaged: 2018-10-25 01:41:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10754103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmiLu/pseuds/AmiLu
Summary: “Bless you,” Keith says at his side, voice nasal.“Thanks,” Matt grumbles, sniffing again. “Ihatebeing sick,” he moans, discarding the sodden tissue and extracting a new one from the box they’ve been sharing.He blows his nose and relishes the brief moment in which he’s able to feel fresh air entering through his nostrils. It’s over before he can actually enjoy it, though, and he scowls to show the world his misery.“I know,” Keith says drily, but the tone lacks his usual grumpiness.In fact, he’s smiling, and Matt thinks he looks beautiful even with a red nose and sunken gray-blue eyes.





	Misery Loves Company

**Author's Note:**

> Okay I've thought long and hard about posting Matt/Keith somewhere else apart from tumblr, but then I said 'fuck it, if someone doesn't like it, they don't have to read it.' ~~I may have uploaded it before and then deleted it, but now I've reconsidered and hell, let me live, self-doubt.~~
> 
> Plot? You won't find it here, this is pure indulgent fluff.

_“Achoo!”_

The sneeze is brutal, even if he’s been expecting it for some time. The annoying, tingly sensation on the back of his throat had been a dead giveaway, as well as the itching inside his nose. Matt felt the bastard coming long before it happens.

But even prepared for it, it takes him by surprise.

And God, he hates it.

His temples throb, his throat hurts, and his nose is dripping. Disgusted, he promptly dabs at it with his too abused tissue, thinking that he needs to change it soon. It’s so wet, it’s almost useless.

The sniffing noise he makes then is rather pathetic, if he’s being honest with himself.

“Bless you,” Keith says at his side, voice nasal.

“Thanks,” Matt grumbles, sniffing again. “I _hate_ being sick,” he moans, discarding the sodden tissue and extracting a new one from the box they’ve been sharing.

He blows his nose and relishes the brief moment in which he’s able to feel fresh air entering through his nostrils. It’s over before he can actually enjoy it, though, and he scowls to show the world his misery.

“I know,” Keith says drily, but the tone lacks his usual grumpiness.

In fact, he’s smiling, and Matt thinks he looks beautiful even with a red nose and sunken gray-blue eyes.

Up to two days ago, Matt had been almost sure that a sick Keith would be a lot grumpier than normal Keith, but he has been proven wrong.

Sick Keith is clingy.

It’s surprising, but not at all unwelcome. Matt will never say no to a request for cuddles and comfort.

“I’m really sorry,” Keith suddenly blurts, dropping his smile and curling a bit on himself. He tugs the comforter up to his nose, and then hides his face completely behind it. The only thing that is visible now is the top of his messy black hair.

Matt frowns, confused with the sudden change of attitude. He shifts his position on the couch so that he can see Keith better.

“Keith?”

“Sorry,” he mumbles behind the thick comforter.

“For what?” Matt asks, puzzled.

Keith doesn’t respond immediately, and Matt huffs. He moves another bit and tugs the comforter down, revealing Keith’s face.

But he won’t look at him.

Matt suppresses the need to roll his eyes and instead pokes Keith’s on the cheek.

“Hey!” Keith scowls, batting the offending digit away. “Stop that!”

Matt can’t help but smile at his affronted look, but doesn’t laugh. Instead, he tries for a semi-stern expression.

“What are you sorry for?” he asks again, making sure to keep eye contact with the younger man.

Keith doesn’t answer, keeping his mouth stubbornly shut. Matt doesn’t press him, he just keeps staring at him with a neutral face, eyebrow raised.

“Gettin’ you sick,” Keith admits after a while, sounding a bit miffed. “It was my fault, if it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t be sick right now, and I know how much you hate it…”

“Keith,” Matt interrupts him, gently. Keith shuts his mouth with a click, and looks at Matt with a hint of worry shining in his normally vibrant eyes. “I really don’t mind,” he says, but Keith’s disbelieving expression makes him elaborate. “I don’t blame you. Yeah, being sick sucks balls, but I don’t blame you for catching it myself. It’s actually my fault, seen as you tried to keep to yourself but I would have none of it.”

“Still…”

“No,” Matt says sternly. “You are not at fault, and I’m not mad at you.”

“But your classes…”

Matt snorts. “As if those rascals will miss me,” he says drily. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they are celebrating right now. After all, their boring astronomy teacher won’t be bothering them the whole week.”

Instead of laughing, as Matt half-expected, Keith scowls. He straightens from his curled up position and pins Matt with a stern, angry glare.

Matt blinks at the sudden change in mood—he is going to have whiplash if this continues happening.

“You are not boring,” Keith growls with so much intensity and feeling that Matt feels a little bit taken aback. “I’ve helped you plan your classes before, and they are not boring. I love them. You make them interesting ‘cause it’s what you love. You love teaching, and you love the stars. It was _your_ love for space what made _me_ fall in love with it, you know?”

Matt feels a little dizzy; Keith has never been one to talk this much, and never with so much intensity. “What?”

Keith nods once, and then his eyes lose focus. This makes it easier for Matt to shake himself off and actually _focus._

For a moment, Keith doesn’t say anything. Then, his lips curl up in a soft smile and he looks at Matt again. And God, there’s so much warmth and affection burning in that gaze that Matt isn’t sure he remembers how to _breathe._

“At the Garrison,” Keith says, voice soft, “I was only thinking about becoming a pilot.” He tucks a lock of hair behind his ear and looks away, a bit self-conscious. “I only wanted to fly, to feel the adrenaline high as I raced the sky. Then I met Shiro, and through him, I met you. And by listening to you talk about space—about planets and stars and galaxies—I came to love it. I love it _now_ because of you. I’m sure your students feel the same.”

Matt can feel his throat clog up, and his eyes fill up with tears. He tries to say something, to give a verbal answer to Keith’s honesty, but the words won’t come. Instead, he only manages to produce a choked-off sound that makes Keith look up in alarm.

His eyes widen comically as he catches sight of Matt’s expression.

“What? What did I say? Why are you crying? Why—?”

Matt chuckles out a wet laugh, full of happiness and probably a lot of snot, and immediately envelops Keith in a hug.

Keith clings to him, just as he always does when Matt hugs him: tight and without a doubt. After a minute, he starts drawing soothing circles on the small of Matt’s back.

Matt feels gross. Crying seems to have given his sinuses a green light to go ahead and release even more mucus. But he’s so incredibly happy that he doesn’t actually care.

“I love you,” he whispers in Keith’s ear, nasally and punctuated with a sniff.

Keith tenses in his arms for a second, and then melts into him again.

“I love you, too,” he answers, and Matt doesn’t need to be looking at him to know that he’s smiling that soft, precious smile Matt adores so much.

Being sick might not be as bad as he’d thought.

_“Achoo!”_

Okay, he lied. It’s still pretty horrible, but having Keith there with him makes it tolerable, at least.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on tumblr @matt-n-keith or @kurosakiami01!


End file.
